Seattle, WA

Seattle’s Little Free Libraries Offer a Catalog of Collections and Connections

Published

1 year ago

January 13, 2025

Seattle’s Little Free Libraries Offer a Catalog of Collections and Connections

Spooning buttercream into a pastry bag, Kim Holloway is close to opening time. She pipes rosettes of frosting on trays of vanilla cupcakes—some plain vanilla frosting, some cookies and cream.

With the aid of Holloway’s “partner in crime,” Kathleen Dickenson, they prop the lid of an old-fashioned school desk in Holloway’s front yard and fill it with cupcakes. Holloway adds edible pearls and glitter. Shortly after 3 p.m., the Little Free Bakery Phinneywood is open for business—the business of sharing.

“I love to bake, and many people have told me, ‘Oh, you should open a bakery.’ And I just think, ‘No, no, no, no. It would take the joy out of it for me,” Holloway says.

“To me, the seed library is part of food security. It’s like having money in the bank, but it’s seeds in the library.”

Like hundreds of other Little Free hosts in the region, she’s found joy instead in giving.

And, like so many good ideas, this one started with a book.

In 2009, a Wisconsin man named Todd Bol built a Little Free Library in his front yard, encouraging passersby to take a free book or drop off extras. The idea and the format—a wooden box set on a post, usually with a latched door—seeded a movement, with more than 150,000 registered worldwide.

“Seeded” got literal fast: The Little Free book idea spread to other sharing opportunities, including a rampant crop of Little Free Seed Libraries, where people swap extra packets of cilantro and Sungolds.

Seattle’s density, temperate climate, walkable neighborhoods—and maybe our introvert culture?—make it easy for the little landmarks to thrive. They exploded during the COVID-19 pandemic, when locals thought outside the box by putting up a box, including what’s believed to be the nation’s first Little Free Bakery and first Little Free Art Library. Many built on the region’s existing affinity for hyperlocal giving—the global Buy Nothing phenomenon, for one example, was founded on Bainbridge Island.

“We just seem to do more of all these versions of sharing,” says “Little Library Guy,” the nom de plume of a longtime resident who showcases the phenomenon on his Instagram feed and a helpful map.

The nonprofit organization now overseeing global Little Free Libraries finds the nonbook knockoffs “fun and flattering,” communications director Margret Aldrich says in an email. (She also notes “Little Free Library” is a trademarked name, requiring permission if used for money or “in an organized way.”)

Some libraries stress fundamental needs: A recently established Little Free Failure of Capitalism in South Seattle provides feminine products, soap, chargers, even Narcan. A Columbia City Little Free Pantry established by personal chef Molly Harmon grew into a statewide network for neighbors supporting neighbors.

Others are about the little things: Yarn. Jigsaw puzzles and children’s toys. Keychains (one keychain library in Hillman City has a TikTok account delighting 8,000+ followers). A Little Free Nerd Library holds Rubik’s Cubes and comic books.

Regardless of where each library falls on Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, they stand on common ground. “There’s a line from [Khalil] Gibran: ‘Work is love made visible,’ ” Little Library Guy says in a phone call. “That’s what they’re doing. They’re showing that they love the community by doing something for them.”

Here’s a little free sample of what you might find around town:

Seeding a Movement

Two University of Washington students sort, count, and bag mammoth sunflower seeds during an annual seed inventory inside a research facility at the Center for Urban Horticulture. These are seeds that birds at the UW Farm did not get to, and they’ll go into the Little Free Seed Library by the end of the day. (Photo credit: Ken Lambert/The Seattle Times)

At the UW Farm, on 1.5 acres of intensively planted land at the Center for Urban Horticulture, students grow more than six tons of organic produce annually. They learn about agriculture and ecology while providing food for 90 families in a neighborhood CSA, for college dining halls and for food banks.

One chilly November day, students and volunteers on the self-sustaining farm worked with the small staff to inventory what seemed like countless seeds for next year’s plantings: Parade onions, Autumn Beauty sunflowers, Painted Mountain corn, Genovese basil. Packs with just a small number of remaining seeds were set aside for the Little Free Seed Library installed near rows of winter greens.

Farm manager Perry Acworth organized the little library during the pandemic, seeing the renaissance in home gardening coupled with a run on supplies. “Seeds were sold out … even if they had money, they couldn’t find them,” she says.

Acworth picked up a secondhand cabinet—one with a solid door, rather than the usual Little Free Library glass window, because seeds need to be protected from light. Althea Ericksen, a student at the time, designed it, painted it with a cheerful anthropomorphic beet, and installed it.

Seeds were packed inside jars to protect them from rodents and birds who otherwise would have a feast, and the Little Free Seed Library was born—shielded from rain and direct sun, convenient to pedestrians as well as cars.

On a recent day, seeds for radish, mizuna, red cabbage, and flashy troutback lettuce waited in lidded jars for their new winter homes.

On the side of the seed library, thank you notes sprout comments such as, “Thank you for sharing.” Enough harvests have gone by to see the library’s benefits, from flowering pollinators to harvests of food. A mere handful of seeds isn’t useful for the farm’s scale, Acworth notes, but for library guests, “If I have five sunflowers in my yard, five heads of lettuce, that’s great.”

Source link

Seattle, WA

Detectives Investigating Drive-By Shooting in South Seattle – SPD Blotter

Published

5 hours ago

April 9, 2026

Press Room

Detectives Investigating Drive-By Shooting in South Seattle – SPD Blotter

Seattle police detectives in the Gun Violence Reduction Unit (GVRU) are investigating a drive-by shooting this afternoon that injured a young man in the Rainer Valley and shut down multiple intersections.

At about 4:40 p.m., patrol officers responded to reports of a shooting at Rainier Avenue South and South Othello Street. Officers found three related crime scenes, with the initial location being the intersection of Rainier and Othello. There, officers recovered dozens of shell casings and bullet damage to a nearby business.

Police recovered additional ballistic evidence at the second scene, near Holly Park Drive South and South Myrtle Place. Officers discovered the third crime scene directly in front of the South Precinct, where they stopped one of the involved cars, a Tesla, that sustained significant bullet damage.

The driver of this car, an 18-year-old man, did not have any injuries. The passenger, also 18, sustained a grazing gunshot wound to his head. Firefighters arrived to treat his injury, and medics took him to Harborview Medical Center (HMC) in stable condition.

Police determined that the suspects fired on the Tesla from another vehicle at Rainier and Othello. The victims sped away from the intersection and the suspect vehicle fled the area. Multiple cars drove away from the gunfire and pedestrians ran to safety. The Tesla sped off towards the precinct before being intercepted by officers.

Seattle police and King County deputies searched for the suspects but could not find them. Police did not make any arrests. GVRU detectives responded to the shooting. Police processed all three crime scenes and investigators conducted interviews at HMC. SPD’s Video Unit responded and recovered video footage from the area.

This is an open and active case assigned to GVRU. The circumstances leading up to the shooting are under investigation. Anyone with information is asked to call the Violent Crimes Tip Line at 206-233-5000. Anonymous tips are accepted.

Incident Number: 2026-96231

*Seattle police officers close down an intersection in South Seattle as they search for evidence following a drive-by shooting.*

Source link

Seattle, WA

Who are your all-time favorite late-round Seattle Seahawks draft picks?

Published

17 hours ago

April 8, 2026

Press Room

Who are your all-time favorite late-round Seattle Seahawks draft picks?

We’re continuing our theme of Seattle Seahawks NFL Draft discussion today with a trip down memory lane.

The Seahawks have a deep history of finding some gems in the later rounds of the draft. Three Legion of Boom members were taken in the fourth, fifth, fifth, and sixth rounds, while Seattle’s first Super Bowl MVP was seventh-round linebacker Malcolm Smith. The only offensive touchdown scored in Seattle’s second Super Bowl win was by fourth-round tight end A.J. Barner, who might be on the cusp of stardom beyond the Seattle sports bubble.

We want to know your favorite Seahawks late-round draft picks of all time, but there is a clear restriction to eliminate some obvious candidates. A “late-round draft pick” is defined as no earlier than Round 4, which means Russell Wilson and Tyler Lockett are ineligible as third-rounders. Once upon a time, the NFL Draft was longer than seven rounds—the Seahawks’ inaugural season had a 17-round draft—so if you want to really choose players from before the change-over in 1994 then go right ahead! Undrafted players like Doug Baldwin do not count because, well, they were literally not drafted.

You don’t have to reason that they were legendary, all-time great Seahawks. Chris Carson is not one of the top three running backs in Seahawks history but I’ll be damned if it wasn’t a joy to watch a seventh-round pick become a quality starter whose career was cruelly cut short due to injury.

And yes, Michael Dickson (fifth-round pick) counts because punters are indeed people.

Refer to Pro Football Reference for the Seahawks’ draft history in case your memory needs jogging.

Chat away in the comments below!

Join the conversation!

Comment on articles, community posts
Rec comments, community posts
New, improved notifications system!

Source link

Seattle, WA

Seattle area Iranian-Americans, activists react to ceasefire deal

Published

1 day ago

April 8, 2026

Press Room

Seattle area Iranian-Americans, activists react to ceasefire deal

SEATTLE — People from Seattle to Redmond are speaking out about the ceasefire deal between the U.S. and Iran after President Trump’s threat of massive attacks.

President Trump on Tuesday announced he would suspend the bombing and attack of Iran for two weeks as part of a temporary ceasefire brokered by the Pakistani government.

The suspension of attacks is contingent on Iran agreeing to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

ALSO SEE | Oil prices drop and stock futures jump as US and Iran agree to a 2-week ceasefire

Iran responded by claiming victory, saying ships will be allowed to pass through the strait, but only under the management of the Iranian military.

Shayan Arya is an Iranian-American with cousins and friends in Iran, who have detailed by phone their experiences being near recent warfare.

“In the middle of our conversations, the bombing started,” Arya explained. “And so she said, ‘Can you hear the bombs dropping?’”

He said he was concerned about power plants being bombed in Iran, and is grateful they won’t be targeted, for now.

Meanwhile, on the steps of Seattle City Hall, a group rallied against the Trump Administration’s foreign policy and actions.

On the steps of Seattle City Hall, a group rallied against the Trump Administration’s foreign policy and actions. (KOMO){ }

“Perhaps we should stop bombing the cradle of civilization and calling it freedom. We should be investing in people, the communities,” one woman chanted through a megaphone.

Counter-protesters showed up, leading to heated confrontations for a short time.

Arya said he feels relief, for now, amid the ceasefire, but that there’s ongoing concern about Iran’s future under its current regime.

“It’s just a matter of time [until the regime collapses], and at what price?” he asked.

CNN reports the White House is preparing for in-person negotiations with Iran to help broker a long-term peace deal.

The developments come just hours after the president posted a message online, threatening, “A whole civilization could die tonight… Never to be brought back again.”

Source link